Marine Recreational Information Program Access-Point Angler Intercept Survey

This request is to extend the MRIP Access-Point Angler Intercept Survey (OMB Control No. 0648-0659) that has recently been conducted from 2016-2018. The new APAIS will continue to be conducted in Maine through Florida on the Atlantic Coast, and in Florida through Mississippi on the Gulf of Mexico Coast (Louisiana not included), Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. On the Atlantic Coast, Maine and New Hampshire will be surveyed in three waves per year (May-Jun, Jul-Aug, Sep-Oct), Massachusetts-Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia will be surveyed in 5 waves per year (Mar-Apr – Nov-Dec), and North Carolina, the Gulf States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico will be surveyed in all 6 waves per year (Jan-Feb – Nov-Dec). These specific sampling periods by state or region encompass the majority of the recreational fishery seasons. Prior surveys indicated recreational fishing outside these periods was rare, contributed a very small percentage of annual landings of managed fishes, and would be disproportionately expensive to estimate precisely. The period of this request is for 2019 – 2021. The APAIS for this period will not be substantially changed from that of the previous 3-year data collection program (OMB Control No. 0648-0659).

The latest form for Marine Recreational Information Program Access-Point Angler Intercept Survey expires 2022-07-31 and can be found here.